Tandem catalysis of amines using porous graphene oxide

J Am Chem Soc. 2015 Jan 21;137(2):685-90. doi: 10.1021/ja512470t. Epub 2015 Jan 12.

Abstract

Porous graphene oxide can be used as a metal-free catalyst in the presence of air for oxidative coupling of primary amines. Herein, we explore a GO-catalyzed carbon-carbon or/and carbon-heteroatom bond formation strategy to functionalize primary amines in tandem to produce a series of valuable products, i.e., α-aminophosphonates, α-aminonitriles, and polycyclic heterocompounds. Furthermore, when decorated with nano-Pd, the Pd-coated porous graphene oxide can be used as a bifunctional catalyst for tandem oxidation and hydrogenation reactions in the N-alkylation of primary amines, achieving good to excellent yields under mild conditions.